Egypt's Army Hits Sinai Militants

A doll depicting Egypt's army chief Field Marshal Abdel Fattah al-Sisi is seen in a cage during a protest by supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood and ousted Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi against the military and interior ministry, around Ain Shams square in east Cairo on Feb. 7, 2014. Photo: Reuters/Amr Abdallah Dalsh

There was another round of violence Saturday in Egypt’s continuing struggle against Islamist opponents of the military regime.

The Egyptian army said it had killed 16 Islamists in Sinai, and a new group said it carried out a bomb attack on police in Cairo, underscoring the widening scope of militant violence since the army removed President Mohamed Morsi from power, Reuters reported.

The army said its aircraft hit radical Islamists near Sinai's border with the Gaza Strip on Friday evening. A statement described them as belonging to the Muslim Brotherhood, which denies government accusations it has turned to violence.

The army has been trying to wrestle control of North Sinai from armed Islamists who have turned their focus from Israel to the government since Morsi, a Brotherhood member, was deposed in July following mass protests against his rule.

The state has declared the Brotherhood a terrorist group. The Brotherhood says it is committed to peaceful activism.

The army said on Saturday a roadside bomb planted to target military personnel had been defused in Sinai.

While many of the attacks on the security forces have been focused in Sinai, bombings and shootings have become increasingly regular and lethal in the Nile Valley and Delta, Reuters reported.

A statement issued by the new militant group - Ajnad Misr, or Soldiers of Egypt - claimed responsibility for two bombings in Cairo that targeted the police on Friday and vowed to carry out more attacks against the security forces.